Kenya Lionesses suffered an embarrassing 48-0 loss to South Africa in their second match of the Rugby Africa Women’s Cup first division match played at the Makis Stadium in Antananarivo, Madagascar on Wednesday.
The two rivals were meeting for the first time since August 2021 when, the South Africans won a two-match test series in Stellenbosch, claiming victory in the opening fixture 66-0 before scoring a last-gasp try to claim the second fixture 29-22.
South Africa were fresh from an 87-0 win over Cameroon in their first match that saw them top the table.
The Kenyans ladies on the other hand won 29-10 against hosts Madagascar in their opening match.
The match lived up to the expectations of Lionesses coach Dennis Mwanja who had anticipated for an uphill task against the South Africans due to their tenacious defense before the match.
The former Kenya 7s captain led the Lionesses to victory in Pool B of the Rugby Africa Cup in the November International Season, qualifying them for the 2023 Rugby Africa Women’s Cup Championship.
South Africa will take on the winner of the match pitting Cameroon and Madagascar.
The winner of this tournament will, qualify for the second tier of the newly launched World Rugby WXV with the runner-up qualifying for the third tier of the same competition which is intended to revolutionize the women’s international rugby landscape, providing for the first time a meaningful pathway for all unions and a competitive springboard towards an expanded 16-team Rugby World Cup in 2025.
